Schumer apologizes for using "b-word"

Sen. Charles Schumer, the state’s glad-handing senior senator from Brooklyn, apologized Wednesday for using salty language to refer to a US Airways flight attendant who told him to turn off his cell phone.

After an argument over whether he had to hang up on his call, Schumer (D-NY) referred to the woman serving on a flight Sunday as a “bitch,” according to a Republican House aide, who told the story to Politico.

“The senator made an off-the-cuff comment under his breath after the flight attendant walked away,” spokesman Josh Vlasto said yesterday. “He shouldn’t have made it, he regrets it and he has apologized for it.”

Vlasto said Schumer called the woman to offer his apology and she accepted.

According to Politico, Schumer was seated next to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) when the flight attendant came by and told him everyone was waiting for him to get off the phone. He asked if he could finish the call and was told no.

He then hung up but continued the argument, saying he should be able to talk until the cabin door was closed. Schumer turned to Gillibrand and made the comment after the attendant was gone, the witness said.

A spokeswoman for US Airways declined to make the cabin attendant available yesterday but said they support their employees for the job they do.

“It’s often said that the most dangerous place to be in Washington or New York is between Chuck Schumer and a TV camera, but it’s increasingly clear that a close second is when someone has the gall to ask the senator to follow the same rules that every other airline passenger must follow,” Walsh said.